Three cities and an immigrant legal services group asked the Supreme Court this week to pause an agreement between Texas and the Justice Department that eliminated a Biden-era rule allowing immigration judges to set aside some deportation cases. SCOTUSblog reported the emergency application on Oct. 15.
The 2024 rule from the Executive Office for Immigration Review allows "administrative closure," which lets immigration judges suspend certain deportation proceedings, for example while a crime victim or witness seeks other immigration relief. Texas sued this year in the Wichita Falls division of the Northern District of Texas, arguing that EOIR had no power to adopt the rule.
Within hours of the filing, Texas and the Justice Department jointly asked Chief U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor to enter a final judgment for the state. O'Connor struck down the rule and barred EOIR from adopting a similar one in the future.
Baltimore, New Haven, Columbus and Centro Legal de la Raza tried to join the case to defend the rule, but O'Connor ruled they lacked standing, rejecting the cities' argument that losing the rule would cost them money. The 5th Circuit declined to block the judgment.
Joshua Salzman of Democracy Forward, who represents the challengers, called the deal "egregious collusion" and argued that a rule adopted through notice-and-comment rulemaking can only be undone the same way. A ruling for the challengers would temporarily restore the rule while their appeal continues. The case is City of Baltimore v. Texas, No. 26A500.
Photo: Photo by Tony Webster, May 31, 2024 (CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
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